Technical Field
This disclosure is related to high-pressure waterjet cutting systems, components thereof and related methods, and, in particular, to nozzle components of high-pressure waterjet cutting heads and related methods that are well suited for cutting workpieces with high precision using a pure waterjet or abrasive waterjet.
Description of the Related Art
Waterjet or abrasive waterjet systems are used for cutting a wide variety of materials, including stone, glass, ceramics and metals. In a typical waterjet system, high-pressure water flows through a cutting head having a nozzle which directs a cutting jet onto a workpiece. The system may draw or feed abrasive media into the high-pressure waterjet to form a high-pressure abrasive waterjet. The cutting head may then be controllably moved across the workpiece to cut the workpiece as desired, or the workpiece may be controllably moved beneath the waterjet or abrasive waterjet. Systems for generating high-pressure waterjets are currently available, such as, for example, the Mach 4™ five-axis waterjet system manufactured by Flow International Corporation, the assignee of the present application. Other examples of waterjet systems are shown and described in Flow's U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,058, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Abrasive waterjet cutting systems are advantageously used when cutting workpieces made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic or other composite materials to meet exacting standards; however, the use of abrasives introduces complexities and abrasive systems can suffer from other drawbacks, including containment and management of spent abrasives. Although pure waterjet systems may solve some of the drawbacks and avoid some of the complexities of abrasive waterjet systems, known systems that use pure waterjets unladen with abrasives are generally insufficient for cutting workpieces made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic or other similar composite materials to exacting standards.